Moisten ing-cabinet



No. 557,043. Patented Mar. 24, 1896.

lIlIII/IIIIAIIIII INVE W01? .pezer jd/m/S AN DREW E.GRANAM.PHDYO'L|THO WASHINBTUNJI C.

UNITED STATESA PATENT OFFICE.

ADELBERT ALPHEUS ADAMS, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

MOISTENING-CABINET.

SPECIFICATION formingk part of Letters Patent No. 557,043, dated March 24, 1896.

Application filed June 7, 1895. Serial No. 551,967. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ADELBERT ALrHEUs ADAMS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cambridge, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Moistening- Cabinets; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a means for maintaining whalebone, horn, bamboo, and analogous materials or substances in a pliable condition, thereby enhancing their value as a marketable commodity and rendering them more available for the purposes for which they are intended,

My invention consists of the constructions and combinations of parts forming the moistening-cabinet for said .whalebone, horn, bamboo, and analogous material which I shall hereinafter fully describe and claim.

Figure lis a perspective view of a meistening-cabinet embodying my invention and showing the same closed. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the entrance to the receptacle open. Fig. is a longitudinal sectional view of Fig. l on the line :I: Fig. 4c is a crosssectional View on the line y y of Fig. l. Fig. 5 is a detail of one of the trays removed.

The cabinet or receptacle A shown in Fig.

l is the one I prefer to use, and is in the form of a rectangular box closed on all sides except at the front, where it is provided with two doors e a, one of which, a, is hinged at its bottom to the front end of the bottom of the receptacle and folds upward between the sides of the receptacle and against stops b on the inner walls of the sides, while the other door, a', is hinged at its inner end to the top of the receptacle at a point back of the front end thereof and folds downwardly upon the top portions of the sides of the receptacle, the said door a having a means adapted to be engaged by a hook d or other suitable device on the door d to securely lock their respective seats or shoulders.

The inner side portions of the receptacle are provided with grooves or channels e, eX- tending preferably throughout the length of the receptacle. These channels or guides may be formed by strips or cleats B secured to the sides and having a height sufficiently less than the height of the receptacle to leave spaces which form with the top and bottom of the receptacle the channels or guides e, before mentioned, or the side members of the receptacle may be rabbeted or grooved to form said guides or channels, or the guides may be formed in any suitable and well-known manner. Capable of sliding endwise in these channels or guides are trays composed preferably of a piece of woven wire or foraminous material D and a piece of felt or other absorbent material E, one being preferably secured to the other in any suitable and wellknown, manner with the felt or absorbent material outermost.

The ends of the felt or absorbent material preferably project beyond the corresponding ends of the woven wire or foraminous material, so that they maybe folded at about right angles with the length of the trays to close the ends of the interior space containing the whalebone or other material.

The felt or absorbent material may occupy l veach of the sides of the receptacle and completely surround the body of whalebon e, horn, bamboo, or other material; but if the felt or absorbent material is at two sides, or even one, it will in many cases be sufficient. the present instance I have shown it at the top and bottom sides with the felt of the lower tray projecting beyond the front end of the wov'en wire or foraminous material, so that it may be bent upwardly to cover the ends of the interior space of the receptacle when the end door, a, is closed, and may be bent downwardly to expose said space when the door is open. The upper tray is shown as having the felt or absorbent material projecting beyond the woven wire or foraminous material at both ends, so that the inner end may be folded down to close the rear or inner end of the' interior space, while the forward end is lapped by the free end of the lower felt or absorbent material when the latter is folded and the receptacle closed, as in Fig. 3, and it may be lifted upwardly when the top door is opened to permit inspection of the contents of the receptacle without disturbing the same.

IOO

The trays are readily removable endwise i interchangeable. This perm its of their being readily detached for the purpose of moistening the felt or absorbent material When necessary or desired and of their being again placed in position. 1

From this description it will be seen that I provide a receptacle in which Whalebone, horn, bamboo, and analogous material may be contained and which is lined with felt or absorbent material moistened with Water or other iiuid, which will be retained by said absorbent material for uniform distribution to the Whalebone or other contents of the receptacle which require moisture to render them pliable and prevent their breaking, cracking, or splitting when being used, which they are always liable to do by becoming dry and hard.

IVhalebone, horn, bamboo, and like materials7 when moistened as before indicated, are made pliable so that they may be even seWed through, punched with holes or eyelets Without splitting, which cannot be accomplished when the said materials are dry. As such materials as above noted are greatly enhanced in value if pliable and can be so kept until ready for use, the value and importance of a simple container or receptacle for this purpose is obvious.

It is known that whalebone (horn and kindred or analogous substances) Will absorb moisture, thus rendering it pliable, soften it, and it can be sewed through, can be eyeleted or punched for use in corsets or dresses, but which cannot be done When in its dry condition. Some part of whalebone splits when dry, cracks if bent; but if kept moist it will not, and to render the Whalebone, horn, bamboo, or analogous material pliable, so that it is ready for use, is the-essential feature of the present invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A moistening-cabinet having an end entrance and interior guides or channels, in combination with trays of Woven Wire and felt, iitted to slide in said guides or channels and removable endwise therefrom, each of said felts adapted to retain moisture, and having an integral end portion or iiap adapted to be folded to inclose the ends of the interior space in which the material is placed.

2. The moistening-cabinet having the top and end door, and having interior guides or channels, in combination with trays of Woven Wire and felt, iitted to slide in said guides or channels and removable endwise therefrom, said felt adapted to retain moisture for uniform distribution to the contents of the cabi-- net, and having its integral end portions adapted to be folded to inclose the ends of the interior space in Which the material is placed.

-In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

ADELBERT ALPHEIIS ADAMS. illitnesses:

FRANCIS E. MERRIMAN,

M. E. COLLINS. 

